Raynors HCA 2017-02
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 2/23/2017
War-date letter, 4pp. 4to., written by attorney Charles P. James, Washington, Dec. 23, 1864. James was a prominent attorney working in D.C. when he wrote the letter offered here to his son David about the prominent men of Ohio now serving the administration. He would later be appointed to the U.S. District Court in D.C. by President Rutherford B. Hayes. In part: "Ohio evidently occupies a potent place and relative to the general government, Dennison assures me that no state commands more influence here. Why should she not. The President has not loved Mr. Chase much, but he knows that chase was a power. Then we have furnished Sherman, Sheridan, Gilmore, McPherson, Crook, Stanley, &c. I would add Grant, but when a man changes his residence in this country he is not counted in estimating the weight of the state in which he was born. Add to all this the troops which we have furnished, and we have pretty good accounts. One of the results is, we have all the time had a member of the Cabinet (and a place was offer'd to Tod); we have two members of the Supreme Court, we have now the Senate Committee on Financial affairs, the House Committee on Military Affairs, and a high place in the Army..." The letter also discusses a visit with the widow of General Daniel McCook (KIA in Kennesaw Mountain July 1864) with William Dennison, and mention of his grandson Frank's promotion to captain: "It is something that Frank is Captain, altho' his promotion signifies nothing but death around him…". Together with three letters from David James to his son Frank, who was serving with the Ohio 52nd Infantry. The three letters were written in December 1863 and January 1864 with some financial content about the opportunity to invest in a plantation, as well as expressing worry for his safety.
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